Silver Bay - A Baía Do Desejo (2007) - Plot & Excerpts
Another enjoyable read from Jojo Moyes. This book is narrated by all the primary characters, with each having separate chapters, so it is interesting to follow the plot from different perspectives. Moyes is excellent at giving them all individual voices. The setting is an old whaling community on a coastal bay three hours from Sydney, Australia, which is struggling economically with its old hotels and whale chasing and dolphin watching expeditions. The future of the community is at stake when a London development company acquires property to build a resort hotel and complex there. One of the main characters, Mike Dormer, works for the developer and comes to Silver Bay to get local planning permission and to sell the community on the idea. In the process, he comes to realize what is at stake if he succeeds. This could have been a simple plot, but Moyes keeps throwing in complications dealing with the characters' former lives, especially that of Liza, who has escaped tragedy and heartbreak in England to raise her daughter at her aunt's hotel on the bay. For her, Silver Bay is a refuge where she can both hide from her past and enjoy the natural beauty and the joy of interacting with the sea creatures that populate the area, as she skippers a whale and dolphin watching boat. But Liza has been damaged in the past and has yet to fully heal. As the story progresses, we gradually learn of the secrets of her past as she fights to maintain her way of life and protect not only her daughter and herself, but all that she has come to love in the waters of Silver Bay. Mike must face choices regarding his successful career and his impending marriage, and decide what role he is to play in the future of Silver Bay and if he can give up everything he found there. Not nearly as good as Me Before You or One Plus One or the Girl You Left Behind. Boring and in one part I though then "lines were down" but then the phone rings...moyes is wayyyy better than this. This novel felt diluted, unrealistic, and cheeky. Read the other three I mentioned. From my Moyes experiences, I kept hoping it would get better. It didn't. If you don't like or by page 40 you won't like it at the end.
What do You think about Silver Bay - A Baía Do Desejo (2007)?
I love Jojo Moyes and I liked this book. However I didn't like it as much as her other books.
—kunapw
Had stopped and started this so many times. Not my favourite of Jojo Moyes.
—lena
A little long, but overall an enjoyable read (listen).
—Lynn
A little slow in getting started but stick with it.
—Sri
